Happy Monday guys!! How do you all like the NEW SET?!?! Was excited to check out this one!! Cream doesn’t disappoint!! What’s the next thing we gotta hit from them?! Cheers guys! 🙌🏻🔥
@@pigstrotters4198 I think regarding bass-players, it's a toss up between John Entwistle, John Paul Jones or Jack Bruce (in the UK I mean). I'd go for Jack Bruce tho'
Baker and Bruce - can't overstate how good they were... Like the new set. I second the calls for Badge or White Room. At some point you guys will have to deep dive Steve Winwood. He crossed paths with Clapton and Ginger Baker in Blind Faith, also sang for the Spencer Davis Group and Traffic plus did a lot of solo stuff.
Bless her heart and God bless her. I'm 67 years old in 1 week. Have spinal stenosis and can't walk well but this song makes me at least want to. Been listening to this since 1969. Great stuff.
Yup. I find this super-danceable also because the beat and the music are so good. I can also dance to rhythmic jazz where I just cant dance to most shlock no matter whether there's a beat or not.
Same with Andy Fraser and Free. Check out Free's version of Crossroads live at Sunderland. It is done at a slower tempo with a lot more swing, It is particularly amazing when you consider that it was the third encore at the end of a long set. And all Free's members were still 20 or under at the time! Lynyrd Skynyrd's version, more like Cream's, is great too.
Jack Bruce was a creative force in Cream, and he butted heads with everyone! It is amazing Cream lasted as long as they did. Bruce was exacting and difficult and a musician of the highest caliber. He was also very grounded, very well read, and was charming. RIP Jack Bruce
He started out as a lead guitar player, but he switched to bass for Cream, because Clapton did the job...they were amazing, and EVERYONE went wild for them back then, and Clapton was at his best then, IMO...
@@Boomslang just Googled it & you are correct for the most part, but he did say this, "But I have played guitar [since] my early skiffle days. I played acoustic, and still do. In fact, I play guitar on one track on the new album". Said this in an interview before he passed. So, we're both corrrect.
@@judiweislo8672 Jack played many instruments. IIRC he started as a child singer then studied classical cello winning a scholarship to the Scotish Royal Conservatory. He switched to upright bass playing and touring throughout Europe with various jazz bands and meeting Ginger Baker along the way. He was a very competent pianist and guitarist and harmonica player. In addition to the jazz gigs he had gigs with Graham Bond Organization, Manfred Mann, Bluesbreakers before joining Cream. Bit of trivia, Jack was asked to joing Marvin Gaye's band but ultimately declined the offer. It would have been awesome to have seen him lay down some tracks at Motown.
@@judiweislo8672 Judi, Jack was an established bass player in high demand before Cream was formed. He had played bass with Ginger previously in several bands, and played (bass) briefly with Eric in John Mayall's Bluesbreakers , before he joined Manfred Mann - again on bass. He was never a lead guitarist although he could play 6-string guitar. Whoever told you that he switched to bass to accommodate Eric Clapton in Cream is either winding you up or is completely misinformed themselves (sorry).
Saw Jack Bruce once in liverpool UK with a band called lifetime , took an album by him called songs for a tailor asked him to autograph it for me when he came off stage signed it no problem went home happy !
Couple of things: 1. At the risk of sounding like the sort of pinhead I always used to sneer at: damn, they don't make music like that any more. 2. Please, listen to Robert Johnson's original; plus everything else he ever did.
That song was released in 1968. It is hard to imagine just how profoundly radical their music was at the time or how much it blew my 16 year old mind. Check out Badge or Politician or Born Under a Bad Sign.
Favorite Cream song. I fuckin' love that this is a live performance; it's so high energy, and aggressive, and Clapton's second solo is engraved into my soul for all time. And then at the end, suddenly there's an audience, and you realize that this was just another night on the road for Cream.
I notice that Steve Winwood is being brought up in a lot of the comments. On that subject, you should check out Traffic, especially John Barleycorn Must Die and Low Spark of High Heeled Boys.
For more blues rock like this, check out some early Fleetwood Mac! They were a blues band before they lost a few members, came to America and slowly converted to more pop/rock. Their leader, Peter Green, was one of the great British blues guitarists. For some suggestions, they had the original version of "Black Magic Woman" (so very different from Santana's cover), a great rocking blues song called "Oh Well," "Green Manalishi" (which was later covered by Judas Priest), and one of my all-time favorite songs by anyone, "Man of the World."
Impressed by their technique. Yep. Cream were the first supergroup. Clapton on guitar. Jack Bruce on bass. Ginger Baker on drums. Three of the greatest rock musicians of all time.
Boy oh boy, you pegged it. Yes, all the players in Cream were amazing, but they famously didn't get along personally, so it's not surprising you picked up on that.
This is not a cream song thus is a cover of a Robert Johnson tune from the 1930s or some time around that time about him going down to the cross roads and cutting a deal with the devil to teach him to play blues guitar later on he wrote and did the song hell hounds on my trail
@@bryonensminger7462 Actually it combines two songs by Robert Johnson, one of them being "Travellin' Riverside Blues. They didnt write the original songs but they sure made something of those songs that wasnt there before. It sure is a Cream song. Clapton plays Travellin Riverside Blues (and Stop Breakin' Down, which the Stones play on Exile) and other Robert Johnson songs on "Me and Mr Johnson".
Derek and The Dominos “Why Does Love Got To Be So Bad?”, great songs off the Layla album - hard to beat Eric Clapton and Duane Allman, one of the best guitar albums ever.
Winwood sings better than almost everyone, rips on guitar better than tons of musicians, and puts most to shame on keyboards. If only he had some talent!
@@neonpark1874 Just watched Traffic at Santa Monica 1972 again and an argument could be made that he's the most talented musician of all time, he'd get my vote.
Oh please! I don't have anything negative to say about U2, but they are not in the same league with Cream especially when speaking about instrumental proficientsy. Eric was a great blues player and Jack and Ginger had jazz backgrounds. Concerning Jack, you don't get to play with Carla Bley, Kip hanrahan or Tony Williams if you don't know your stuff.
Andy seemed impressed with Clapton's "aggressive" guitar solo. If that is the case, I cannot wait to see his reaction to something like GREEN GRASS AND HIGH TIDES by THE OUTLAWS. I would like to see if he survives listening to the solos in this song.
@@sarahzentexas When did they promise this? I think they hinted at it but a "promise?" Also, the more of these song reviews I listen to the more I can see Alex really drives down on production, editing, and flow of the song , if you will. I think he might find a song like GREEN GRASS AND HIGH TIDES a bit much. If you are an OUTLAWS fan then you know the song WATERHOLE is somewhat of a drummer's song. In any event, I'm sure they will get to this eventually.
@@scottingram7634 Yes, I have posted that fact in another comments section. I know they are young, but it is hard to imagine them not knowing their homegrown talent. To be fair, it has been a long time since the original 1970s FLORIDA GUITAR ARMY reigned. They will eventually get around to it. This is one band from the Seventies that I still listen to on a regular basis. I really miss Hughie's guitar playing. He is one of my fave guitar players along with Roy Buchanan. Can you imagine them listening to Roy Buchanan?
Both good reaction channels. I also love Kel and Rich for classic rock and metal reactions, and Soul Train Bro for really IN DEPTH reactions. So many silly reactors out there.
Sublime. Eric's interpretation of Robert Johnson's Crossroads blues. His 2 lead runs on here still 'hit the spot' every time i hear it.That's after listening to it for 53 years ! One of many Cream classics.
Instead of reacting to other Cream songs, i would recommend checking out Blind Faith - Can’t find my way home. It’s a different Clapton project with Steve Winwood and Ginger Baker after Cream broke up.
Personally I have my reservations for the deeper cuts of Cream. While I do listen to their albums every now and then, I think a lot of their music can be either a tad unfocused with too much jamming (which may not be appealing to casual listeners), or they’re more straightforward rock/pop tunes (eg Badge, I Feel Free - which are nice fun songs but that’s about it).
Clapton got tired of the constant fights between Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce, often ending in punches. Blind Faith not only had Ginger Baker and Clapton, but Rick Gretch on bass and the incomparable Steve Winwood. But in my opinion Jack Bruce was one of the best bass players ever!
@@robertkelly6282 If you read the original reviews of the first Led Zeppelin album in "Rolling Stone" and "Creem Magazine", they said it sounded like The Jeff Beck Group.
@@jasontaverner391 if you listen to the first Beck album with Rod Stewart on vocals, and Ron Wood on bass, and guess what -- guest appearances by Jimmy Page -- and you'll realize pretty quickly that Page decided to take that sound and turn it up to 11. You may. be shocked to discover that Rod Stewart set the tone for Robert Plant's approach to howling the blues -- we ain't talking no Maggie Mae or Da Ya Think I'm Sexy.
You didn’t really mention the song itself. The history of Robert Johnson and the knockout punch that is the blues. I only bring it up to make sure you and your audience look into it a bit.
Have no idea why you think this is a recording from their last ever show. It appears on Wheels of Fire and was recorded March 10, 1968 at Winterland in SF - 8 1/2 months before their Farewell Concert at the Royal Albert Hall (opened, believe it or not, by Yes). And btw, Cream were only together for about TWO years.
Not the last show *but - they eventually broke up mainly because of friction (some say war) between Bruce and Baker and I’ve always thought there was some of that in this track, while Clapton just tried to keep it together.
Ok - now time to add a few more Cream tracks to your list : Tales of Brave Ulysses and Badge Only complaint on Badge is that its too short - leaves you wanting so much more . No worries , pull a live version as it always includes a fantastic extended jam section .
Robert Johnson’s playing is incredible, and I think that the idea that he had to make a deal with the devil to get it done is sooooo short changing the man! I mean, I can understand it, his guitar work is fire!
@@johnbutler5650 Honestly, its interesting if anythinh, and i dont think its meant to be demeaning or anything, just adding a cool backstory to it. Making him that much cooler 😁
Please listen to Robert Johnson's version. It is where it starts. Then listen to his mentor, Son House. Where it really all starts. He did Jack White's favorite song. Nwhote covers lots of his songs.
'Tales of brave Ulysses' is definitely a must. To me it's their greatest tune. 'Swlabr' is another good one I don't see mentioned much. Good stuff dudes!
You have to listen to every Cream song three times, concentrating on each instrument in turn. That way you get to enjoy the three musicians competing to dominate each song. They’re all great and so is the music, but getting them to cooperate was always the problem.
Interesting Alex picked up on that. Clapton decided Cream was over when he read a review of a live show that said they were just three dudes soloing the entire time.
Something to consider when diving into Cream: This band was the evolution of the Power Trio as a function of Blues and Rock. The Who - power trio with a front man. Led Zeppelin - power trio with a front man. Rush, James Gang, ZZ Top, Nirvana - all power trios. Cream - pure power trio.
@UCExTfUTpFQpsGRlplf7HnUQ Adding Warren Haynes to any band is generally a smart move. Got a chance to see the Allman Brothers Band a couple of times while he was with them. And yeah, Derek Trucks is no slouch either. Good times!
For me, 'Politician' - studio version - is just awesome, especially through headphones. It features not one but two incredible Clapton solos (that is, double-tracked, not one after the other), one in both channels, and as you listen, they cross over from channel to channel. It's a simple effect, but mesmerizing.
I hadnt recalled "politician" until i just listened to it. Definitely a great solo (×2). It brought to mind the brief double solo in The Beatles "Yer Blues". But i confess that probably my fave Clapton solo is that on "Presence of the Lord"and not only for its dramatic entrance.
Musicianship: They were called "Cream," for a reason. They were the cream of rock musicians...the first "super group." Eric Clapton, late of The Yardbirds and Mayal's Bluesbreakers had recently been declared, "God," for his guitar playing. Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker were also widely recognized for their accomplishments in rock and jazz. Bruce is listed as the number 8 bass guitarist by Rolling Stone and Baker the number 3 drummer. Try the songs, "Tales of Brave Ulysses," "Deserted Cities of the Heart," SWLBR," "I'm So Glad," "I Feel Free," and "Spoonful."
You totally hit the nail on the head with them being 3 individual musicians. They but heads all the time, famously did not get along super well. They were amazing musicians and put out powerhouse music for the time, really pushed the envelope. But they were never gonna last too long.
Yes they never tried to be modest which is why they called themselves Cream. They also didn't try to step back to let the other one shine. Baker and Bruce hated each other and Clapton got sick of their fighting and could see a solo career on the horizon. I like I Feel Free and Tales of Brave Ulysses.
Spoonful is my favorite. On the album, Delaney and Bonnie on Tour with Eric Clapton, they do a tribute to Robert Johnson. That's the same album with Only You Know and I Know on it. Great song.
Still sends shivers down my spine, especially the second solo. I remember the first time hearing this as a kid in 1968, I had no idea who it was but was immediately stopped dead in my tracks and just had to listen to the whole thing. It was so different to all the other crappy songs and hippy stuff that commercial radio was pushing at the time. And it’s amazing that Clapton never plays the same solo twice, so we are just so fortunate that this unique moment of magic was captured on good quality recording equipment. I don’t think Clapton bettered this version in terms of energy and musical logic in all the years that followed. As for not playing as a team, that’s just bullshit, sorry, but the chemistry between these 3 musicians was at its peak here, regardless of how they got along personally.
Check out “Yer Blues” by supergroup The Dirty Mac. John Lennon - vocals & rhythm guitar Eric Clapton - lead guitar Keith Richards - bass Mitch Mitchell - drums The band also at times features Yoko Ono yelping like a goat.
i just became a Patreon over the weekend and you guys really doing some great things I advise everyone who enjoys these young chaps to become a Patreon as well rock on fellas
Hi, guys. Cream was together less than 3 years (except for the reunion in 2005), but their impact was mighty. They WERE the cream. In fact, there really is teamwork in the sense that they are all playing off of each other very much. It's almost like a musical conversation very often. It may not seem as noticable in Crossroad, however. There was a great deal of improvisation that depended upon the mood of the venue. Jack Bruce was a classically trained musician, but he was very frustrated by the rigidness of the instructors, and did not feel free to express himself in that environment. He also played piano. Ginger Baker was a jazz drummer, and he is a particular favorite of mine. There are so many songs of theirs that you should listen to. Politician comes to mind, and so does Tales of Brave Ulysses. While recording the Disraeli Gears album in New York City, Eric discovered a new invention known as a wah-wah pedal. He put it to work in Disraeli Gears.
Also, my next suggestion for you guys if you do it (you totally should), please do Green-Eyed Lady by Sugarloaf. Do the long version. A lot of the versions on Spotify have the short version. Type in Sugarloaf 2 times (that’s also the name of the album) and the first track is the long version. Keep on rocking. Also this is a great example of a Power Trio!!
although I'm not 100% positive of this, but I seem to recall that infamous graffiti of 'Clapton Is God' spray painted was on a wall either in or on a wall in a London subway near a suburb or borough, Islington maybe? Someone please tell me it's still there! I'd like to think it is. :)
Yeah, Clapton didn’t start with CREAM GUYS! Yardbirds, John mayall ( look at the guitarist in those 2 bands). And we have to hear Styx????!?? Dennis FD younh
The graffiti on the London tube is where Clapton is God first appeared. Still, you want blues/rock fusion? Bell Bottom Blues from the Derek and the Dominos album. Hint: EC was Derek. Also, EC doesn’t mean extra credit. It means who the TA was listening to while grading papers.
Lol, the Count Basie Orchestra or the Miles Davis Quintet were the first 'supergroup'. Such a silly term. They call ELP a supergroup, but really, how many people have heard the Nice or Atomic Rooster? Better to just acknowledge the artists' histories and evolutions without needing to market them.
Love the new set!! Hope the bourbon is stepping up as well. I know you dig them Chicago horns, so i must request Tower If Powers eternal question...What Is Hip? Pure East Bay Grease. 👍🏻✌🏼💯
The Outlaws 'Green Grass and High Tides' and/or Molly Hatchet 'Flirtin With Disaster' (studio versions). You WON'T regret it! Classic Southern rock BANGERS from back in the day, and then some!
@@ComeOnIsSuchAJoy Yeah I'm very familiar with the instrumental that opens John Barleycorn. Glad is also the name of a Hot Lips Page tune from about 1920.
They were a power trio, you were going to hear the bass. Alex called it, sometimes they were 3 guys soloing at once. Clapton broke up the group because of a bad review in Rolling Stone how it was all about the musicians and not the music. You still need to hear them play 'Tales of Brave Ulysses' which is a psychedelic classic.
That "lack of tightness" was on purpose. They had all started in jazz music, where each player solos simultaneously, and they all feed off what the other is doing. This is why during the solos they aren't "tight." For more great 60's guitar, listen to the band Ten Years After -- "I' Going Home" and "I'd Love to Change the World." For whiskey, try Bulleit Bourbon.
I'm LOVING Y'all's NEW SET! 😎 👍 🎸 🎶 🍺 I HATE this Song selection 'cause i've NEVER been a Cream Fan (this Song SUCKS, NOT Your Reaction, just the Song... IT SUCKS), ha ha LOL! 😝 😂 😝 😂
